Ahmed Ibrahim
There was a tense moment on the floor of Parliament on Thursday when the Minority raised the issue of quorum for the approval of another batch of new ministerial nominees.
The nominees in question were Ahmed Ibrahim, Minister-designate for Local Government, Chieftaincy, and Religious Affairs; Ablah Dzifa Gomashie, Minister-designate for Tourism, Culture, and Creative Arts; Elizabeth Ofosu-Adjare, Minister-designate for Trade, Agribusiness and Industry; and Agnes Naa Momo Lartey, Minister-designate for Gender, Children and Social Protection.
The Minority questioned whether there was a sufficient quorum to validly approve the new ministerial appointments. The motion, raised by Prof. Kingsley Nyarko, claimed that the House did not meet the required quorum to take a decision, rendering any votes on the nominees unconstitutional.
Matthew Nyindam, the New Patriotic Party (NPP) MP for Kpandai, addressed the Majority following accusations that the Minority was disrupting parliamentary business over the alleged lack of quorum.
“Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker,” Nyindam began. “Mr. Speaker, I think the Majority should understand that we are here to conduct government business. Nobody is here to derail the work of the House,” he asserted, defending the Minority’s stance on the quorum issue.
The Majority had accused the Minority of trying to block progress, claiming that the quorum objections were an unnecessary delay.
“But members must also know that you cannot say, in one breath, that you are ready to support, and in the next breath, that you are not. When you do that, you accuse us wrongly, especially when a member raises a legitimate concern that we do not form a quorum,” Nyindam said, referring to the Minority’s concerns as valid and procedural, despite the Majority’s objections.
Nyindam singled out a statement made by a Majority member from Madina, Francis-Xavier Sosu, accusing him of unfairly criticizing the Minority.
“I think that an Honourable Member from Madina has not been fair to this House, especially to the Minority,” Nyindam said, before calling for the Majority member to retract his comments and allow Parliament to move forward with its business.
“People or colleagues that we are talking about here, they are our colleagues. If you listen to the Honourable Member who raised Orders 64 and 104, he was appealing to the Majority to remember they call themselves a supermajority. These are the people who are struggling,” the Minority MP said, referring to the Majority’s claimed supermajority status, which he argued had not yet translated into effective decision-making.
“These are early days yet. These are early days for us to be struggling on the floor. These are early days for the supermajority,” Nyindam continued, suggesting that the Majority’s numerical advantage should be used more effectively to prevent unnecessary disruptions.
The MP then turned his attention back to the Majority member from Madina, urging him to reconsider his choice of words.
“Look at this entire chamber. We want to appeal to our colleagues, especially the Honourable Member from Madina, that sometimes his choice of words is not appropriate,” Nyindam said.
The immediate past First Deputy Whip of the Majority, Ahmed Ibrahim, then weighed in, urging the member who raised the quorum issue to withdraw the motion to prevent further delays in the legislative process.
Speaking on the floor of the House, Mr. Ibrahim acknowledged the importance of parliamentary procedures but stressed that the current situation could only be resolved by retracting the quorum challenge and moving forward with the day’s business.
“For many of us, this is just our first time handling this situation,” Ibrahim said, referring to the challenges of navigating parliamentary rules. “I therefore want to plead with the government, especially my former chief whip, to call on the Honourable Member who raised the quorum issue to withdraw it so we can proceed and make amends.”
The motion to challenge the quorum caused a pause in parliamentary activities, and Ibrahim, who has extensive experience in parliamentary affairs, expressed concern that the situation could escalate unnecessarily. He explained that while it’s important to follow procedure, sometimes diplomacy and negotiation are the best course of action in these circumstances.
“The Speaker has made it clear, and we all know that if you are on the government side, it’s not enough to just attack,” Ibrahim stated. “We must defend ourselves with respect and understanding. When the Honourable Member raised the quorum issue, they looked around and knew the government side did not have the numbers. In such situations, it’s better to plead, not attack,” he indicated.
Ibrahim suggested that if the government side could not convince the Minority to withdraw their objections, they should call on the Speaker to defer the question, rather than push through a vote that could result in a lost motion and more procedural delays.
“If you plead and they still disagree, then you ask the Speaker to defer the question,” Ibrahim urged. “If we force a vote and it’s challenged, the motion will be lost, and we’ll have to start over, which we cannot afford right now. So the only way forward is to withdraw the quorum issue and make amends. It’s the only exit that we have.”
Ibrahim emphasized the early nature of the legislative session and the difficulties that arise when quorum challenges are raised. He acknowledged that while ringing the bell to summon MPs to the chamber could resolve the issue, it would take time, especially with many MPs currently attending other committee meetings.
By Ernest Kofi Adu, Parliament House